Docwatchers
/Monday, July 1st, 7:00pm
DocWatchers
Curated by Hellura Lyle
Nora
Alla Kovgan and David Hinton, 2008, 35 min.
Based on the life of Zimbabwean-born dancer Nora Chipaumire, this film is part biopic, part fable, part dramatic cinema and part dance film. In the film, she returns to the landscape of her childhood and takes a journey through some vivid memories of her youth. Using performance and dance, she brings her history to life in a swiftly moving poem of sound and image. Shot entirely on location in Southern Africa, NORA includes a multitude of local performers and dancers of all ages, from young schoolchildren to ancient grandmothers, and much of the music is specially composed by a legend of Zimbabwean music Thomas Mapfumo.
Still Moving: Pilobolus at Forty
Jeffrey Ruoff, 2012, 38 min.
At Dartmouth College in the 1970s, four male athletes joined a dance class, improvising vigorous creations from scratch. Their collaborative work led to the formation of Pilobolus and the transformation of modern dance. Eschewing the bright lights of Manhattan, and naming themselves after a microscopic fungus, Pilobolus. The troupe honed a movement philosophy to teach dancers and non-dancers alike. Still Moving: Pilobolus at Forty focuses on the company's lifecycle--including a founder's death--its evolution, transformation, and regeneration. On the eve of its fortieth anniversary, the troupe returns to New Hampshire for a Dartmouth-commissioned world premiere of an innovative collaboration with cartoonist Art Spiegelman. At their studio, on the road, in community workshops, and on stage, Pilobolus thrives as an arts organism.
Q&A with directors Alla Kovgan & Jeffrey Rouff.
